Aircraft engine competitiveness is influenced by numerous engine attributes. One of the most salient engine attributes is the maximum thrust-to-weight ratio that is offered by an aircraft turbofan engine while remaining safely mounted to the aircraft and providing safe operation. The thrust-to-weight ratio can be improved by reducing the overall weight without affecting the engine thrust. Thus, aircraft turbofan engine competitiveness may be improved by reducing overall aircraft engine weight, which is impacted by factors such as the number of assembly interfaces in the engine, the number of components/parts that go into the engine, and the way in which loads are distributed throughout the engine.
An aerodynamically streamlined aircraft turbofan engine is typically comprised of multiple components coupled via multiple stages of assembly interfaces to form an inlet inner barrel, engine fan housing, front frame, and bypass structure, that surrounds the bulk of the aircraft engine core. Reducing part count and/or using lightweight materials in any of the aircraft turbofan engine stages may result in a reduction of the overall weight of the aircraft turbofan engine.
Among the aforementioned stages, the aircraft engine front frame is typically a relatively high weight and expensive-to-manufacture component that must satisfy multiple criteria. The aircraft engine front frame is required to support/transfer the mechanical loads between the engine core and the airframe, and is also the primary structure that supports the engine core and the gearbox. Further, the aircraft engine front frame is the mechanism configured to aerodynamically force the airflow into either the core of the engine or allow the airflow to bypass the core and enter into the bypass flowpath formed by outer flowpath ducting. Therefore, reducing the weight of the aircraft engine front frame and outer flowpath ducting would significantly impact overall aircraft engine weight and improve aircraft engine competitiveness.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an integrated outer flowpath ducting and front frame system and method for an aircraft turbofan engine that minimizes assembly interfaces and reduces overall aircraft engine weight. It would be further desirable to provide an integrated outer flowpath ducting and front frame system and method for a turbofan engine that minimizes assembly interfaces and enables efficient distribution of mechanical load.